Bully! APH x OC - Blades on Ice
by HetaliaOtakuPerson
Summary: Teresa Scharpe has been mercilessly bullied for the last year and a half of high school. Nothing ever seems to change, until her getaway hobby of ice skating brings her closer to a couple friends. Can Teresa get past her previous troubles and her bipolar mother to be a free person once more? Rated T for language.
1. School Sucks - A Lot

School was a hellhole for Teresa Scharpe. In simplest terms.

10th grade was filled with never ending torture, including piles of homework, the upcoming SAT, stubborn teachers-

"Oi, move, you great lump!"

"You're blocking the whole damn hall, fatass!"

And that.

"Sorry," the dark haired girl squeaked as the group of her personal tormentors stood impatiently before her. They passed by, throwing a couple more insults Teresa's way. Alfred, his blond cowlick bouncing, made sure she was slammed into the lockers on his way. "Pff, don't be so clumsy, Ter-ass-a," the American scoffed. "They're gonna haveta scrape all the shit you left on those lockers off all day." A couple of his lackeys laughed, including Gilbert, Francis, and Antonio, known as the "Bad Touch Trio" to the rest of the school, and the "Total Bastard Trio" to Teresa.

The girl just kept her royal violet orbs focused on the ugly carpeted floors and waited for all the boys to pass. A couple others, Arthur and Lovino, made sure to give her a shove as well. Teresa didn't try to fight back. She did, once upon a time, but the bullies made sure she learned her lesson well after that. The girl lifted a hand tenderly to her nose. She had seen what they all could do. And she couldn't afford to get severely hurt with her...sick... mother at home. No more weight needed to be put on those frail shoulders.

With a sigh, Teresa riffled through her cheap plastic binder, thick with other students' homework, while heading towards her English class. A huge project was due today, an essay, one she had worked hard on for about a month. She was proud of all the research she had done on the prompt: "Shakespeare". Detailed, definitely, but so was most of the schoolwork the students at World Academy were given.

Said essay was currently missing.

Cursing, Teresa looked around for any sign of the essay on the floor. _Where could I have dropped it?!_ "Missing something, _chienne_?" A seductive voice drawled behind her. Whirling around, the girl was face to face with Francis, notorious for being a pervert _and_ forgetting his homework. " _Pardon_ , but I'll be needing this essay. An ugly _sot_ like you can just suck up to the teacher once more, _non_?" With no answer other than an unsurprised look, the Frenchman turned and walked away to where his friends were waiting, where he received a high five from Antonio.

The minute bell rang, signaling a minute until Teresa would be tardy. She sighed, giving up, and hurried towards her impending zero, or a late grade, if she was lucky. _There goes my A and B streak..._

* * *

Teresa was tensed as the class began. The teacher was shaking the desktop computer on his desk while pressing buttons, trying to restart the ancient projector. Another useless presentation on gerunds was bound to be today's class. Or was it infinitives? She wasn't sure. _They have the time to make these slideshows on participles, yet no one pays attention to a teen getting beat up in the halls._

Francis was chatting with Prussia and Antonio, as usual, not seeming to be the least bit bothered by a guilty conscience. Things like this, stealing homework, had happened before, but never with such a big project. The only thing bigger would be Science Fair-

 _No, don't give them any ideas!_ Teresa thought, paranoid for a moment that her bullies had ESP, a little day-nightmare. After a moment, she shook the ridiculous thought off, straightening up. _No one has ESP. Calm down, Teresa, you paranoid idiot._

"Pass up your Shakespeare essays, please," the bald English teacher croaked, catching the girl off guard. "And raise your hand if you didn't complete it." The rustle of papers and quiet chatter filled the room as Teresa hesitated. She glanced towards Francis, who was taking out her own thick, handwritten essay. A wave of anger surged inside her, along with a stupid idea with certain consequences. No way she was going to do that.

"Miss Scharpe, I don't have your essay," the impatient grumble reminded the short haired girl, earning a couple laughs and smirks.

"I'll need to rewrite it, sir," Teresa quietly admitted, her anger barely contained. She'd have to handwrite all that information again, no printer available at her small apartment. The teacher lifted an eyebrow. "That'll be a 70 if turned in tomorrow. On a major grade, so I suggest you shape up. Be sure to meet me after class."

"Yes, sir," Teresa mumbled, blush pink brushed across her lightly tanned cheeks. "But, um…" A worried glance thrown at Francis and the others. All their expressions said _Shut up right_ now, which she ignored. "I think someone took it. Um, someone from this class." She regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. Francis fell out of his chair with a thump, and Alfred exchanged a look with Gilbert. "Are you sure?" the teacher half groaned and half sighed. Teresa nodded, pushing up her navy glasses nervously. "Well, then, if you really think so..." He eyed the huge stack of about 30 teens' work regretfully. "I'll go through everyone's essays and look for your handwriting. That's the most I will- ahem, _can,_ do for you."

"Thank you," Teresa sighed, fidgeting with a black lock of hair. Three pairs of eyes glared like lasers into her, blue, green, and red. Another "lesson" was definitely coming for her. The bruises from last time had barely healed, leaving yellowish marks all over her body. Whatever it was, the stubborn girl mentally refused to go down without a fight, zoning out from the talk about verbal phrases.

Just another part of her normal school day.

* * *

"Yo!"

" _Puta feo_!"

"Bitch!"

Teresa tried her best to speedily enter her locker combination with her non-dominant hand, clutching a binder in the other. She had taken a while getting there, and now the hall was cleared of any witnesses, student or teacher alike. With a sick mom at home, she always bought lunch, resulting in stolen money at times. But this wasn't just about the crumpled green bills in her jeans' pocket.

"Hey, Mädchen!" Gilbert called out in his high-pitched German accent. "Ve don't appreciate you snitching on Francis over here!"

"Why don't you just suck up to the teacher again, bitch?" Antonio chimed in.

"Do we need another lesson? Because I'm pretty sure bad girls need to be taught." Alfred smirked, pushing the girl against the silver lockers. Teresa braced herself as her spine met the hard surface. _Where are all the damned teachers?!_ "No," she muttered, not making eye contact.

"Vhat vas zhat?" Gilbert taunted. "I couldn't hear you over your unawesomeness."

"I said, 'No', you idiot!" Teresa snapped, lifting her head. "Now get the hell away from me and leave me alone!" Arthur clicked his tongue. "Don't you speak to us in that tone," the Brit scoffed. "You obviously need to learn to control your temper, git."

"Hurry up already," Lovino grumbled grumpily, his dark brown curl bouncing to his right. "I have a hot lunch to eat."

"Don't be such a, what do you call it, a _bambino_ , Lovi, we're just having some fun!" Antonio teased.

"Shut up, and don't call me Lovi!" the Italian yelled.

"I agree with Lovi," Francis smirked. "This is getting boring, _mon amis_. No one likes a prolonged lesson, not even the teachers." The group closed in on (Name), who tried to slip away from the tight semicircle forming around her.

She didn't get a chance to cry out for help before a fist slammed into her nose.

* * *

 **EDIT: Sorry, I didn't realize reader inserts weren't allowed on this site ._.'. Instead, meet my OC Teresa! Sorry for any inconveniences or anything. And also, I do not own Hetalia, sadly!**


	2. I Wonder If He Skates?

Teresa felt numb. Both her body and mind felt numb. Sprawled out on the dirty carpet, she counted her injuries. The girl's ribs ached with a dull pain. The skin around her rare violet eyes felt swollen. Her lip was busted open, leaking crimson, and she knew the purple and black bruises on her torso would be back afresh.

The ebony haired teen couldn't move a muscle without rippling pain shooting up her spine. Lunch would be ending soon, and she didn't want to be stampeded by dozens of 15 and 16 year olds. Questions would surely be asked if someone found her like this, all beat up.

And, funnily enough, someone did find her.

"H-Hey!" a soft tone from farther down the hall called out. "Are you alright?!" Teresa forced her swollen eyes open to find a duplicate of Alfred standing over her. She drew back in instinctual fear, only to notice the usual cowlick was replaced with a bouncing curl, and the boy's eyes were a deep violet instead of a baby blue. "I'm okay," she mumbled, trying to stand up.

"No, you're not," the Alfred look-alike argued quietly. "You're all covered with bruises! Eh, here, let me help you get up." Teresa took his outstretched hand, and after a few moments, she was standing on her two shaky legs. "I'm Matthew," the blond teen introduced himself.

"I'm Teresa," the girl mumbled, carefully wiping her face with the back of her hand. "Thank you. And, um, sorry, but I mistook you for Alfred at first, if you know him...?"

"Oh, yeah, right. He's my twin brother. I get mistaken for him a lot." Teresa's jaw dropped like a cartoon character's. This seemingly quiet and shy boy was the brother of Alfred? Almost unbelievable, only made so by their almost identical looks. Matthew chuckled a little, reading her expression. "Yeah, it is a bit hard to believe. Especially for two as different as we are. Eh, how do you know him? And what happened to you? Don't tell me it was nothing."

"Um...well...it's sorta a long story. For another time, I mean, it really isn't-" Just then, the bell interrupted their conversation. "Sorry, I need to go clean up before class," Teresa panicked, finding her purse on the floor, surely missing the few coins that would've been her lunch. Matthew gave her a look. "I'm going to expect an explanation tomorrow," he stated softly but firmly.

"Yeah, at lunch?" Teresa offered. The Canadian nodded with a smile. "I'll see you." They both parted ways, the girl turning and looking for the nearest private restroom. As soon as she found it, she slipped in and closed the door, just as the first rush of students flooded the hallway. Sighing in relief, the girl turned to the mirror only to reel back in horror. No matter how many times it happened, it was hard to look at herself so injured. Blood trickled from her nose, smeared on her lips where she wiped it. The skin around her eye was swollen and inflamed. Lifting her shirt, the girl stared in horror at the harsh violet bruises replacing the older yellowed marks. How Matthew managed not to wince at her injuries, she had no idea. Makeup would barely cover this.

From her purse, Teresa drew the necessary tools. She coated her face with one, two, three layers of powder and foundation, until the redness was barely seen. Long sleeves covered the marks on her arms. "Heh," she said bitterly to herself, looking in the mirror at the seemingly normal girl there. "Practice makes perfect, I guess."

When she came out a couple minutes later, the least she looked like was a girl who'd just cried her eyes out in the bathroom. No one paid her any mind.

"Hey there, Teresaaaa!"

Other than Alfred. _ESP, Teresa, ESP…_

The obnoxious American slung his arm around the girl's shoulders, sending a bolt of pain through her body. "I really enjoyed my lunch today! Teaching really makes me feel better!" he grinned falsely.

"I'll bet," Teresa muttered sarcastically. Alfred's smile grew bigger. "What was that, _Ter-ass-a_?" he asked cheerfully, squeezing her a bit harder. How someone like this could be Matthew's twin brother, she had no idea. Alfred was acting in a way that no one in the crowd of students around them would know what was going on.

"Nothing," she sighed quietly, reining in her frequent anger. No good to get beat up again. "Great! So we won't have to deal with problems like this again, right?" Alfred passive-aggressively chirped. Teresa responded with a small shake of her head. Of course this was going to happen again. With her temper, it was destiny. "Awesome!" the teen yelled loudly. "Catch you later!" ' _Catch' indeed,_ she thought sarcastically as Alfred ran ahead to find his cronies.

 _One day this'll all be over. That day I leave high school, I'm not ever dealing with this again. But for now, I'm alone. I'm poor, friendless, and alone.  
_

 _I can't wait for this damned day to be_ _done_ _._

 _..._

 _Stupid alliteration._

* * *

The last bell of the day rang, sending Teresa sprinting as if running for her life out the door with a small bag carrying her few school supplies. _At last…_

Nothing else major had happened throughout the rest of the day, other than the usual small shove or hate note. But now the girl could forget her school problems and focus on other ones. _Like how Mom needs more money for her meds…._

Teresa trudged along the familiar sidewalk, turning down a different route than the other students walking home. Around a corner, and her destination came into sight.

The ice rink.

All the worry in Teresa was flooded by calmness. The rink always did that - calmed her volatile nature down. The cool air was a relief as she stepped in. "Yo, Tess," Otis, the skate rental guy, greeted her. "Here ya go." The older man handed her a pair of skates with a wink, Usually, Teresa wouldn't be able to afford going skating as regularly as she did, but Otis let her in for doing some work around the rink.

"Thanks," the girl smiled, at ease. Otis nodded. "Oh, yeah, thought you should know," he stated. "I'll be taking some assistants to help me around the rink so I can plan the expansion happening in a couple weeks. Didn't want ye to be confused when a teenager lets you in instead of me." Teresa dipped her head a bit, faltering. "I'll be sure to remember," she said, hefting the heavy (f/c) skates up.

As she walked to a bench and sat down, Teresa thought. _Assistants? Does that mean I might not be necessary anymore?_ What teenager would want to clean ice off the floor instead of going straight home to their large houses? She laced the skates with expert hands and stood up. _I guess I shouldn't worry about it for now…but if I lose ice skating, I could lose my mind too...  
_

Teresa stepped on the ice. The cold bit her bare head and fingers, but she pushed off anyways. She drifted as soft pop music played overhead. With a small smirk to herself, the girl began to stroke carefully, concentrating on the techniques she had learned long ago, from a mother that hadn't been so occupied with a disorder that she ignored her daughter. After gaining some speed, she made a sharp 180 degree turn to skate backwards. Steadily, on two legs, then one as she lifted a skate off the ice. The other few people stared at her twirling and skating around the rink. However clumsy she was on land, that was made up for when she was on ice.

An hour later, Teresa's face was flushed and she was sweating, but happy. She shot a glance at the clock. 4:30 sharp. Her mother would be expecting her home now. _Cinderella at the ball._ After returning the skates, Teresa wiped her forehead and walked towards the exit. She took a deep breath with closed eyes as the sun's rays hit her. _Time to go home now...I hope Mom isn't-_

"Oof!" the girl yelled, colliding with someone. Her injuries from earlier in the day roared again with pain. "Ow, sorry!" When she looked up, she was met with a brown haired crying teenager who was trying to apologize while blubbering. _I know him, but from where...? Wait a second, that curl!  
_

"Lovino?!"

* * *

 **Hello internet peoples, this is the author speaking! I just want to say I hope you're enjoying this story as it develops! I do realize the chapters are somewhat-ish-maybe short, but I'm trying to end them all on cliffhangers and it just sorta works that way, sooooo, yep.**

 **Feel free to review, and don't forget to favorite this story!**


	3. Why Did The Italian Cross The Road?

"Lovino?!"

"You know my _fratello_?" the teen asked, wiping his eyes. "Do you know where he is?"

"Uhm, fratello?" Teresa echoed, completely lost. The auburn haired boy nodded. " _Si,_ my brother! Lovino!" _Brother…?_ The girl mentally compared the two people. Lovino had darker hair and skin, and his curl was towards the right. Not to mention he was one of her bullies. The teen in front of her had a curl bouncing off to his left and he looked like he couldn't even hurt a fly. _I can't believe this...First Matthew and Alfred, then this kid and Lovino?_

"Alright, first of all, what's your name? I don't think I know you," Teresa questioned, still a bit put off.

"Feliciano, but you can call me Feli," he sniffed. _Two Italian brothers, it reminds me of Mario a bit._ Teresa sighed. "Okay, look, Feli, I have to get home, but maybe I can help you find your brother-"

"Really?" Feli cheerfully interrupted, as if someone had flicked a switch to change his mood. " _Grazie, bella ragazza_!"

"Um, sure…? I'm Teresa, by the way," the girl hesitantly introduced herself. "Do you have a phone to call him?"

"No, Lovi doesn't trust me with one," Feli pouted. _Lovi?! That's his actual nickname and not just a tease?_ Teresa tried to hold in her snort. "How did you lose him?"

"Well, I was seeing if they had any pasta at the food counter, but they didn't!" the Italian cried. "And by the time I came out, Lovi wasn't there! He said he would leave if I wasn't fast…Do you think he left me, Teresina?" Teresa did the math in her head. She was sure Lovino wouldn't have left Feli on purpose...Then she figured it out and barely contained another snort. _They passed each other at the entrance and didn't even notice!_ "It's okay, it was proba- definitely - an accident," she comforted him. "Do you know the way home?"

" _Si_ , but I'm scared to go alone…" Teresa thought carefully while taking a glance at the large clock over the skating rink. _Mom's going to get worried_ , she thought, conflicted. _But I can't leave Feli here!_ The girl sighed again. "I'll take you," she offered.

" _Grazie_!" Feli exclaimed loudly, enveloping the startled girl in a huge hug. The girl awkwardly patted his head. "You're welcome. Now let's hurry." Feli nodded, and the twosome started off towards the right, as he directed. After five minutes of walking, he exclaimed, "Oh, wait! It was left!" The Italian ran back the way they came, causing Teresa to have to follow him so he didn't get lost. Feli reminded her of a puppy, full of energy and annoying at times. However, she found him sweet.

"It was left, right, right, then a left, no, it was right, _si_ , _destra_ , and then _sinistra_ , _e sinistra ancora…_ " The teen continued mumbling in Italian as he tried to lead them through the streets, doubling back many times and regaining their bearings. The background changed from the busy city to a large community of houses, no doubt unaffordable by Teresa's small family. "Is this your community?" she asked, tired of walking.

" _Si_! I can find my way from here! Lovi made me memorize it!" Feli cheered happily. Despite her aches and how late it had gotten, Teresa decided to accompany him to his house. "I'll still walk you," she stated, smiling. "Don't want you to be picked up by a stranger."

As they hiked, Feli chatted. "I go to World Academy, what about you?" he asked.

"I go there too," Teresa answered. "Funny I haven't seen you before."

"I always thought World Academy was a strange name for a high school, _si_?"

"Well, I think there was this guy named Hidekaz Himaruya who sponsored and named the school. He asked for it to be named after this anime he made, but I'm not sure."

"Wow, that's cool! Like the anime came to life!"

"I guess so. That actually does seem pretty cool."

Feli bounded up the steps of a two story house and called, "This is my house!" Teresa felt a pang of jealousy for the Italian. "Well, there you go," she said. "Now I need to get home." She turned to go when the door opened, revealing Lovino. "Where the hell were you, _bastardo_?! I was waiting for you! Not that I wanted to or that I cared!" he yelled loudly. Then he spotted Teresa. "What are _you_ doing here, _puta_?!"

" _Fratello_ , Teresina helped me get home!" Feli smiled. He raced down the steps again and wrapped the girl up in a hug. " _Grazie, bella ragazza_!" he thanked her. "I'll see you at school tomorrow!" As the door was shutting after the enthusiastic Italian, Lovino and Teresa made eye contact for a moment, only for Lovino to look away and shut the door.

"...well, you're very welcome for bringing your little brother back," Teresa deadpanned, standing on the sidewalk. The only response was a bird tweeting. "Right. I don't know why I expect this kind of stuff."

The lone girl started the long trek home.

* * *

"Mom, I'm hom-"

"Tess!" the girl's mom exclaimed. "Tess, I wanna bake cookies!" The raven haired girl stood still in the doorway. "What?"

"I told you, I wanna bake cookies! But I had to wait for you! Go to the store and grab some ingredients, I already found a recipe in a magazine!" With the excitement of a little girl, Teresa's mom half threw a piece of paper at her. "Mom, wait, didn't you notice I'm an hour and a quarter late?"

"Oh, you are?" her mom faltered, throwing a glance at the beat up and dented clock on the wall. "Look at that, I didn't even notice! Now, here's some money! Get me some cookie stuff!" The woman tossed some bills at Teresa and shoved her out the door.

"Um," Teresa stated, standing at the door of her apartment. _What the hell just happened…?!_ She had just arrived home, and now her mom throws her out to get cookie baking supplies when they could barely afford housing? "Right. I'll get going, then."

Teresa's tired legs trudged onward, automatically taking her to the nearest grocery store. _Well, this is great._ The air outside had started to grow crisper, and the sun was setting, sending pinkish hues across the sky. The bruises decorating the girl's skin ached with a dull pain. "I'm going to save for a bike…" she moaned out loud, her feet tired from a day full of walking.

Things like this happened sometimes. Teresa's mom would send her off at unearthly hours to buy random things - cookie dough, holiday themed stickers, etc, etc, etc. When Teresa was younger, she would accompany the girl to buy whatever she wanted. It was like heaven for the eight year old child.

When Teresa was younger, however, they still had some money to waste.

Her mom's bipolar disorder had gotten worse over the years. Sometimes she'd refuse to take her medicine and Teresa would have to crush the pills and mix them with her food. Sometimes they'd be so short on money that Teresa would forfeit her meals until her mom started working again. And the worst part was that if anyone found out, Child Services would probably get involved and separate the two.

 _Wsshhht._ The automatic doors of Market Joe's opened to reveal the aisles of endless food, snapping Teresa out of her thoughts. "Alright," she said aloud, "cookie dough." She remembered the cash she was still clutching in her fist and shoved it in her pocket, then started looking for the dough aisle. Signs hung from the ceiling: Bread, Jam, Condiments - Oatmeal, Cereal, Bagels - Baking, Mixes, Snacks - _there_. The girl hurried over to the mixes, selecting a box of chocolate chip dough.

Only one checkout lane was open, due to the lack of customers and the late hour. Teresa gave the box to the blond haired young lady who quickly stashed the phone she had just been using away. After swiping it under the red light of the scanner, she stated flatly, "Ten fifty-two." Teresa fished the crumpled green bills out from her pocket only to realize her mom had given her three one-dollar bills. "I…" she started to say.

"Don't have enough," the woman grumbled, finishing her sentence. She half tossed the box to the side. "Bye, have a nice night." After a moment of being put off by the blond's sarcastic statement, Teresa hurried to the door, not wanting to be chased out with a broom (learned by experience from that one time she had pushed another grumpy cashier).

"Well, that was a complete and utter waste of time."

The lonely girl started back to her apartment.

 _It's "entertain myself solely with my thoughts" time again…! Yay…!_

* * *

 **Hello lovely readers! I just want to say that I hope you're enjoying the story so far! Yay for the Italian brothers! Feel free to leave questions, comments, concerns, or ideas in a review!**

 **Also, thanks to all my reviewers! I'm glad you're curious about this story!**

 **Ciao!**


	4. Of Pancakes and Mumbled Greek

The next morning was _not_ a good one.

The night before, when Teresa had gotten back, she found her mom was already sound asleep on the old couch. Being exhausted herself, she also retired with no dinner. Now, she was frantically pulling on her clothes while brushing her teeth. The girl shot a glance at the clock. Just a couple more minutes and she would be late. There was no time to eat breakfast, and she probably wouldn't get lunch either, thanks to her favorite classmates.

Coming out of her room, the girl noticed her mom was still passed out in the living room. She grabbed her bag with a sigh, homework untouched, and left the small apartment.

After a moment, she came back in, and took one of the apartment keys. _Wouldn't want to forget those._

While walking, Teresa assessed her sped up choices. The clothes she was wearing would easily cover up the injuries from yesterday and any from today as well, if she was to piss off her tormentors again that easily. She didn't plan to, though. No more stupid and risky ideas. "Nope," she even said aloud, just to seal it.

"Hey, who are you talking to, _Hündin_?" a familiar Prussian voice called, joining her walk to school.

 _Too loud. Dammit, Teresa._

"Her imaginary friends, of course," Francis smirked. "Just like Iggy."

"I don't have imaginary friends!" the Englishman exclaimed in protest. "And besides, how would someone like _her_ make any friends, imaginary or not?"

"That's a good point," Alfred mock-thought. As Teresa endured the onslaught of comments, she noticed that Lovino was missing from the group. He was usually right there, standing next to Antonio, but today he was absent.

"We have places to be, guys," the Spanish teen reminded the group. "Much better places than hanging with Teresita here, no?"

"You're right," Gilbert finished. "No need to hang out vith such unawesomeness." And with that, the group walked ahead of her towards the school, some spitting a last insult at the girl. _That was weird…they didn't stay to beat me up some more._

"Teresa?" a softer voice asked. She turned around. "Matthew!" she sighed in relief, expecting another bully. "Um, hi."

"It was my brother?" the Canadian asked, his face framed by anger. Teresa blanked. "Um…" _He saw that._

"I knew he was teasing some people, but not like _that_ …." Matthew looked away in shame.

"No, it's okay, there's nothing you can really do.." Teresa admitted, trying to look at her situation from Matthew's point of view. Finding out your brother's been kicking around a girl you just met? _Must be difficult._

"Agh, they're all so stupid," he murmured, watching the group enter the school building in front of them.

"Yeah, agreed."

There was a minute of silence.

"Why don't we swap phone numbers, just so you can feel like you have someone on your side?" Matthew suggested shyly. Teresa's face flushed red with embarrassment. She had known this would've come up at one point, but not so soon. "I don't have a phone," she muttered.

"That's alright," the teen accepted, surprising Teresa. She had expected a judging _Really?_ at the least. "Do you have a computer to email?"

"Actually, I do," Teresa answered. It would've been a surprise to anyone who knew her predicament. They'd gotten it when the person in the apartment below them had gotten a new laptop to replace an old desktop computer. The nice young man had offered it to the family of two, and they accepted it.

"Great!" Matthew smiled. "I'll write down my email if we have time once we get inside."

 _Ding, ding, ding, diiiiiiiing~_

"Apparently not," Teresa stated, annoyed at the bell. "I'll see you at lunch."

"See you."

The two friends parted ways.

* * *

Teresa sat in her assigned seat in homeroom, waiting for the teacher to complete her attendance. She was probably half deaf - the group in the back of the classroom was being irritatingly loud. Sitting back in her chair, the girl let her mind wander.

 _I wonder if Feli is in any of my classes?_ the girl asked herself, remembering the cheerful Italian counterpart to Lovino. For the first time, she observed the people around her. Usually she only paid attention to the teacher and her bullies, but only because they demanded her attention. If left to her own thoughts, she would drift off. Most of the teens appeared to be half asleep or bored out of their minds, except for the group in the back and a tall boy with long brown hair, who was fully asleep on his desk. _Did he not get any sleep last night or something?_ Curious, Teresa decided to pay attention to the attendance.

"Bondevik?"

"Here."

"Bonnefoy?'

" _Présent_."

"Carriedo?"

" _Presente._ "

"Héderváry?"

"Here."

"Jones?"

"Here!"

"Karpusi?"

No answer.

"Heracles?"

Silence, punctuated with some muffled laughter. _Heracles? Sounds very Greek-mythology-ish._ The girl sitting next to the teen poked him. "Πέντε ακόμη λεπτά," he muttered, swatting at the girl.

More laughter filled the room.

Hesitantly, the girl poked him again. "Εάν μεταφράζετε αυτό, καλό για σας…." More muttering in what Teresa guessed was Greek. "Είναι καιρός να ξυπνήσετε … already?" Heracles lifted his head tiredly. The dark haired girl stifled her own giggles at the scene.

"Heracles, there's a problem with you sleeping in class," the teacher sternly stated. "That problem is that _it's not allowed_. Meet me after class." The teen nodded sleepily.

The lesson started after that show of entertainment, and Teresa again sunk into boredom. Her mind started wandering again. _Heracles seems like the friendly type...maybe I should start trying to make more friends? And then I can have my own revolution and overthrow the bullies...sounds nice…._

"Miss Scharpe? I don't have your homework."

"Crap," Teresa muttered. _That's going to be a problem…_

* * *

Teresa hurried to find an empty table in the cafeteria. Today she was much earlier than the day before, luckily, but she still had to rush to find a seat. There was always the option to sit outdoors, but due to the cold temperatures, she'd have to compete with every other 10th grader for a table. Searching carefully, in order not to miss anything, she found a spot at a fully empty table. Usually, once she sat down, no one would sit at the same table, and she'd be left alone. Today, though, things were going in the opposite direction they usually did, so she expected that to change as well.

"Hey, Teresa," Matthew greeted the girl. "Mind if I sit with you?" _The all-knowing Teresa is right again!_

"Yeah, sure!" Teresa smiled. On the outside, she kept her cool, but her insides were throwing a party. _I have a friend again!_ Matthew sat across the table, swinging his lunchbox onto the table. Teresa, on the other hand, had forgotten to bring money and didn't bring any lunch. The two sat in silence.

The Canadian opened his box to reveal a clear plastic box filled with...

"Pancakes?" Teresa blurted, curious. Matthew looked up with pink cheeks.

"Yeah, I like them. I know it's weird, though..."

"No, not at all! It's a cool idea!" The teen also pulled out a miniaturized version of a maple syrup bottle. "Does this count as weird yet?" he asked, smiling.

"Nope!" Teresa answered honestly, her stomach rumbling. The fluffy pale cakes looked delicious. And the smell...

She must've either been drooling or staring, or maybe both, because Matthew chuckled. "You don't have a lunch," he commented, "and you look extremely hungry. Do you want one?"

"Yes please," Teresa accepted eagerly. Matthew chuckled again and handed her a pancake doused in syrup. He watched as she hungrily bit into the breakfast food. "Is it good?"

" _Mmmm,_ " was the delighted response. The girl bit into it again. "I'm glad. I made them myself."

Teresa nearly spat out the pancake. "How? It's amazing!"

Matthew shrugged. "It's a gift."

The twosome enjoyed their lunch chatting and eating, unaware that a certain American was watching.

* * *

 **Ooh, a certain American. Creeepy. *forshadowing forshadowing***

 **Because I'm a desperate person, I check the views for this story almost every day, and HOLY CRAP! Almost 100 views to just this story alone! I feel so loved and noticed! Thank you all for reading! This otaku loves being noticed! ^J^**

 **As usual, please do favorite, follow, and review! ;D  
**


	5. To Get To The Ice Rink

" _Ciao, bella_!" the friendly Italian greeted Teresa in the hall. Lunch had just ended, and she and Matthew had parted ways, only to run smack into Feli. "Oh, Feli!" she smiled, relieved that it hadn't been one of her tormentors.

" _Come va?_ " he asked with a smile. Teresa used her very limited knowledge of Italian to respond. "Uh, _set bene?_ "

" _Sto bene_ ," he corrected. "Oh, _Teresina_ , I wanted to tell you! I had pasta for lunch today! Homemade, the cafeteria doesn't make good pasta. And Lovi was eating what I made, so now I'm proud!"

"Lovino was there?" Teresa interrupted suddenly, confused.

" _Si!_ " Feli grinned, eyes closed as usual. _Why are his eyes never open…?_ _And why didn't I see Lovino this morning? What the_ hell _is wrong with today?!_ "Oh, okay," Teresa laughed nervously out loud. "Just wondering."

The bell rang its usual annoying tune. "Uh, have to go, Feli."

" _Ciao!"_ the boy exclaimed, waving.

" _Ciao..!"_

Teresa sped down the hallway and to her locker, her mind unattached to her body. _Oh god, I did something wrong! And now he wants to confront me by himself…? What did I do what did I do whatdidIdowhatdidIdo…._

Little scraps of paper fluttered out of the metal compartment, but she let them float down to the floor. She already knew the contents. A couple weeks back, however, she would've opened them only to see the mean comments written in graphite. _I'm not even going to think about what they said….but I'm glad they haven't found out about my mom. That would mean a ton of trouble…_

 _These days go by so slowly…_

* * *

Teresa was a little hesitant to visit the rink that day, remembering how Feli and Lovino were there yesterday. _Maybe more students from World Academy go there than I thought….But what am I thinking?! I can't give up the rink! No sir, I'm going to keep going as long as I can! Onwards!_ After her short self motivation speech, she half marched out of the school building and on the same path her feet had walked since ninth grade, to the same building she'd loved as a kid.

Right as she placed a hand on the steel handle of the door, she reminded herself that there were going to be volunteers letting her in instead of Otis. _I just hope it's no one I know._ The door swung open easily when she pulled it.

It was a little more crowded than usual, but Teresa wasn't too worried. Things like birthday parties or playdates happened occasionally at the rink, and more little kids would be clomping around in their skates than usual. The only thing that shot her stress up was seeing two Asian teens behind the counter where she usually met Otis. One had long hair knotted into a ponytail, and was scanning the racks of skates for a little boy. The other was glancing back and forth from a thick comic to a computer, short hair swinging by his ears.

"Uhh…" Teresa tried to say. The teen with the shorter hair and brown eyes looked up from his comic, which he had just flipped a page of the wrong way. "Um, herro," he said with an accent. "You're here for the free skate?" Teresa nodded cautiously. "That's 10 dorrars, and do you need skates?" he told her.

"Oh, um, no," she said. "I'm Teresa...did Otis tell you about me?" The boy threw a glance at a sticky note on the screen of the computer. "Teresa? _Hai_ , Otis did terr me about you. I'm Kiku," he introduced himself. "One second." He turned to the other teen and said something in a different language. The taller one hefted a small pair of skates in the air along with a bigger pair. As he turned, Teresa held in a 'What?'

 _I know him! He's Yao, from one of my classes, I don't even know which, but I know he has it with me! And he's never been the nicest, but he's not a bully….I think…._

"Here you go," Yao stated, dropping her skates on the counter and handing the little blond haired child his. "Thank you!" he smiled with a small accent, adjusting his blue and white hat while running off. The Chinese turned to Teresa. "And yours-" he started to say, his gold eyes meeting the girl's royal violet ones. "You?" he asked. "Why are you here?"

"I'm here to skate, just like everyone else," Teresa replied briskly, taking her skates. She turned and walked towards a bench, overhearing Yao comment, "她在我班上，她是个好学生。"

"这是你唯一关心的吗？" Kiku asked him. **(A/N: Probably should look this up. Google Translate is forever.)**

Teresa sat down and set her skates on the floor, nicking her ring finger on the blade as she reached for the laces. "Ow," she winced out loud, shaking her hand. A red line about a half inch long ran across her skin. _That's deep._

 _Wait._

 _I cut myself on the blade._

 _That's never happened before._

 _What's wrong with me today?_

" _Hola, bella!_ " A cheerful voice called out to Teresa, snapping her out of her thoughts. The Italian ran up to the girl. "I had a feeling you'd be here again, so I wanted to come! Lovino wasn't the happiest- _Mio dio, Teresina_ , you're cut! Are you okay do you need a band-aid are you bleeding do youneedtogotothehospitalwhat'stheemergencynumberagain-"

"Feli," Teresa interrupted. "I'm fine. But thank you." She wiped her finger on the side of her pants and started to lace up. "And did you come just for me? That's sweet."

"It's no problem for a _bella ragazza_ like you!" Feli smiled. _His eyes are still closed…_.

"Wait a second, Lovino's here too?" Teresa asked, realizing that she was probably in trouble. Feli nodded. " _Si_ , he's over there! And he's having trouble tying his skates, and I couldn't do it too, and you're the only person here I know! So can you help us? Pleeeeeeeeeease?"

Teresa could feel her entire face going up in flames. "Wait, what?" she dumbly asked. "You want me to do what?"

"Tie our skates for us!" Feli stated simply. "It's been a while since we were here, and we've forgot!"

"Uhhhhhhhhm," she said. "I…...FINE, fine, I will! Stop making that face though!" Feli grinned. "YAY! Thank you, _Teresina!_ " He grabbed Teresa's hand and pulled her to another bench where Lovino sat. The differences between the two siblings were highlighted when they were next to each other.

" _Cosa sta facendo qui?_ " Lovino snapped at Feli in Italian.

" _Fratello_ , she can help with our skates!" Feli responded.

"What?! This _idiota_?! I don't- what-" he started to splutter.

"You can watch her do mine first, if you want, ve~!" With that, Feli sat on the black bench facing Teresa. _I guess I have no choice..._ she thought hesitantly as she bent down. In a minute, both the Italian's skates were done up tightly. "See, _fratello?"_ Feli said happily.

Lovino responded with nothing but grumbles as Teresa moved on to his skates. _The same feet that bruised me_ , she realized as a sore spot on her leg ached. His skates were done quicker than Feli's.

" _Grazie_ , _Teresina!_ " the light haired Italian thanked the girl.

"Uhm, no problem," she stated. Feli stood up quickly, almost falling over. " _Bella_ , do you want to skate with us?" he offered. It was Teresa's turn to trip. _This guy….._

 _Well, we're gonna be in the same rink anyways, so…._

"Yeah, sure!" Teresa plastered a grin on her face. "I'd love to!"

"Yay!" Feli dashed to the double doors of the rink, tripping again and again. Lovino stood up briskly, causing the dark haired girl to take a step back. "This never happened," he muttered under his breath to her. Teresa nodded, holding back a snort at the boy's embarrassment.

When they entered the rink, they found Feli lying on his back in the ice. "Help, _fratello!_ I've fallen and can't get up!" Teresa watched as Lovino struggled to balance on his thin skates while helping his brother up. Finally, the two were standing. Teresa stepped onto the ice and breathed in the cold air. _This day has been a weird one...But I'm finally at the rink-_

"AGH!" she yelled out loud, interrupting her own thoughts as Feli tripped once again and sent both of them sprawling. The girl could get up quickly, but the Italian needed Lovino's help again. "You said it's been a while…" Teresa commented hesitantly. "Do you remember how to skate?"

"I don't think so," Feli admitted, wiping the ice from his pants. "But I want to see you skate! You look like you're really good, you got up so fast!"

"Sure," Teresa shrugged, already stroking away from the pair. Just to show off, she leaned on the backs of her skates and turned 180 degrees swiftly, now skating backwards. She could see Feli clapping from the entrance of the rink. Pushing with her heel, the girl swiveled back, just in time for the curve of the rink. Doing crossovers the rest of the way, she was back at where the Italians were standing.

"Wow! _Bella,_ you're so good!" Feli exclaimed, still clapping his gloved hands together. "Right, Lovi?" Only muttered grumbles were the answer. "Will you teach us?"

… _._

 _This kid never runs out of things to ask me for._

… _._

"Of course!"

The next hour was spent teaching one over-enthusiastic and one under-enthusiastic Italian to skate. At the end of the lesson, they could take a couple steps and glide without the wall. Well, Feli could. Lovino had refused to learn from the girl. "I'm not learning how to skate from an _idiota_!" he had stated.

"I'm skating!" Feli grinned as he glided a couple inches. Teresa held back a laugh. "Indeed, you are," was all she said.

* * *

Right after the brothers exited the rink, Teresa let out a sigh. Reteaching them to skate had nearly made her forget the red gash on her finger and all the strange things that happened that day. _I ate lunch with someone today. Lovino wasn't with the group today. I tied two Italians' skates and taught them how to take steps on ice. I cut myself on the blade. Yao was at the counter instead of Otis._

Was all that necessarily _bad?_ She had fun skating with Feli, if not both the brothers. She had met Kiku at the counter too, who seemed to be friendly.

 _You know what? Today was a somewhat decent day._

* * *

 **Hello, dear readers, your attention please. I'd like you to know - this chapter was almost not published. Last week, I really didn't have much motivation to write, so I just sorta did it all yesterday. Your support (and the knowledge that pitchforks and torches would be taken out) has really pushed me to finish it. Please know that it's appreciated and it's the only thing keeping me going with this story!** _  
_

 **Another thing - the hellhole prison we call school starts next week. I wish you all luck for dealing with it and the challenges ahead, hopefully unlike Teresa's ._.'. I will publish the next chapter on Sunday, and updates will be fortnightly instead of weekly. *sigh* I hope you guys are okay with that - school keeps me pretty busy.**

 **Thanks for bearing through that, and sayonara!**


	6. UPDATE

**Hello readers! This is an update from your author. This story will NOT be my main priority from now on until fall break or something, instead, a new "Email APH" question answer thing will! You can find details on the story, which I'll try to get out before Sunday. Basically, I'll be making a ton of emails for the characters, and you can email them and get responses, which will be posted on the story page.**

 **Thank you!**


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